Briana Vedsted has asked her fellow wordpress bloggers to help host a virtual party for her talented scrap-booking friend Tracy. Join Tracy below in her responses to Briana’s interview questions about her wonderful world of scrapbooking. Enjoy!!

So, what is “scrapbooking”?

Simply put, scrapbooking is putting beautiful, fun paper, photos, and memorabilia together to tell a story.Think of it as enhancing your photos. They say a picture is worth a thousand words. What if you don’t know what those words are. Scrapbooking allows you to remember all the stories, jokes, heartfelt moments, and everyday life, and share the memories with family and friends. Imagine looking at a photo from someone else’s life. The photo by itself may give you some hints. Now if the photo were scrapbooked, the story behind the photo would also become clear. Scrapbooking is a fun way to share and remember your story for years to come.

And what in the world is Memory Works?

I like to call Memory Works the Mary Kay of the scrapbooking world. Memory Works carries scrapbooking products from all the big names (Fancy Pants, Pink Paislee and BoBunny, to name a few), as well as their own line called Simple Stories. Memory Works also offers a monthly kit subscription for $29.95 (plus shipping, handling, and sales tax). Each themed kit is packed with coordinated papers and embellishments from different brand name companies.

In addition, Memory Works offers a Hostess Incentive. This is a free gift to the party hostess can earn if the party results in an order of $150.00 (before tax). I like to offer this as well if there is either a single order from a customer of $150, or if there is a group of customers, though not necessarily at a party, that order enough supplies to meet to required minimum. The incentive changes every month and can be anything scrapbooking related, from a collection of patterned papers to a stamp set to a few specific items from a brand name collection.

Is scrapbooking hard to do?

Scrapbooking should be fun, so no, it’s not hard to do. If you find you’re having difficulty, take a step back. See where you’re getting stuck. Are you trying to re-create a technique or layout and it’s not coming together? Do you not understand the terminology? Take me for example. I know thismuch about knitting and crocheting. Now I know the terms knit and perl. Did I spell them right? No idea. Can I tell you what they mean? Nope, sorry. I learned a lot of the terms from magazines and websites. And for me, it clicked. I kept wanting more and more. So it shouldn’t be hard. Again, if you’re running into trouble, try to pinpoint what exactly is giving you pause. Sometimes you need clarification, or to just tell yourself there are no mistakes. I really enjoy it and I’m always learning something new, so there’s no limit to what you can create. I’ve found if you love it, you stick with it and your style evolves from there.

Do you have some examples of what scrapbooking is?

Absolutely. These are some recent layouts (a layout is 1-2 scrapbook pages). I have lots more on my blog with close up detail photos and info on supplies and techniques I used.

Can someone teach me how to scrapbook?

Absolutely, there’s lots of options. Now, I must confess, I learned by doing. I never took a class, nor did I know anyone else who scrapbooked. Heck, I had just learned about it myself. So I went to my nearest bookstore and bought some scrapbooking magazines. Then after reading them and devouring them (figuratively speaking, of course), I went to my local craft store and bought some supplies (careful, this hobby is addicting! in a good way :D). And I started scrapping!.

However, if my journey sounds scary, you can take a class. These can be offered anywhere from a religious/spiritual center, your local craft store (big box and small business), library, school, historical society. If you know someone who is a scrapbooker (the majority of which are women, but there are some VERY talented men out there), you can ask them to teach a class, or just teach you! There are also numerous blogs online whose author post videos for certain techniques, etc. And, being in the age of YouTube, there are blogs, magazines, and individual people who have a channel which you can view and/or subscribe to. One benefit to individual scrapbookers is that they teach techniques that you may not otherwise comes across. And they give you lots of inspiration and ideas.

Where can I get scrapbooking supplies?

In a sense, anywhere. However, just because you CAN get it anywhere doesn’t mean you SHOULD. Office supplies, arts and crafts stores, big chain stores, and local scrapbooking/stamping stores; all of them carry supplies. I’ve actually found that the big box crafts stores by me do carry some of what I need, but not most of what I’m looking for. You can also go the online route, which opens up the possibilities tremendously.

Big box general retailers are limited in what they carry because they’re general retailers. So, see what they carry, check the prices, and think if you’ll actually use it. Don’t get lured by the clearance sticker of half off and pay $5 for a border punch that you’ll never use. This is why if you can, purchase your supplies from a crafts store, a scrapbooking store if possible. If you live out in the middle of nowhere, so to speak, your best options are probably online shopping or a consultant for a scrapbooking supplies company (yes, shameless self-promotion, I had to do a little :P)

I live in the United States, do you know anyone who I could send my pictures to for them to design a scrapbook for me, because I’m just to busy to do it myself right now.

Why, yes I do *wink, wink.* I am happy to design a scrapbook, mini album, etc. for you. My prices are simple and really reasonable. I do not want any screaming wallets, thank you 😛 You can look at my blog, myscrapmuseis.wordpress.com, to check out my prices, and e-mail me at tracy . carrig @ gmail . com to get the whole party started (just delete the spaces before hitting send)!

What is your favorite thing to make?

So far, layouts, either one of two pages. I just finished a two-page layout for my little person’s first birthday. I’ve start making cards, which I sell on my Etsy shop, called ScrapMusings. And I’m starting to get into altered art, mixed media, and mini albums. I’m loving getting messy, and I love layers.

I want to find out more about this art called scrapbooking! Show me more! Are you online? Twitter? Facebook? Pinterest? Got a blog?

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Like most people, I have a number of sides to me. The most interesting one probably emerges through my writing, hence this blog. I love to read, and also to write, and so this is a way to share both.

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